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People seem to forget that it's a heuristic, not an actual logical inference.
by twofornone 5y ago
People seem to forget that it's a heuristic, not an actual logical inference.
- naasking 5y agoSolomonoff induction provably converges on reproducing any input function by only observing that function's outputs, and it formalizes Occam's razor as a key principle. I don't think it's fair to call it a heuristic anymore.
- logologology 5y agoOccam's razor is formalized in Solomonoff induction but that doesn't mean that it is not still a useful heuristic in Science more generally.
- naasking 5y agoSure you can use the simpler version heuristically, but the OP's claim is that it is only a heuristic and not a valid logical inference. I'm saying we now have proof that it is logically valid to claim that one should prefer theories with fewer assumptions, all else being equal.